Although the invention is not limited to such a use, it will be convenient to discuss the background of the invention in terms of the cleaning of cooking-pans having so-called "non-stick" surfaces, for example, those polytetrafluoroethylene surface layers known under the Trade Mark "TEFLON". Such pans have been in common use for many years, and there have been many attempts to provide a cleaning material that will provide a mechanical cleaning action (when being rubbed across the surface) without abrading the "non-stick" surface.
Non-woven materials have been tried, but in order to give them the desired cleaning effect it has been considered necessary to use, for example, hard fillers or binders, or to fuse some of the fibers together into knobs, which tends, however, to produce a material that is somewhat abrasive and that has a scratchy feel liable to lead the consumer into believing the product may scratch delicate surfaces.